It Takes Time
by SeekMyFred
Summary: 'They said you were charming,' she said, rolling her eyes. 'It was always "Scorpius this, Scorpius that," and well, that just made me think you were…well, boring.'
1. The Meeting

**So, I decided to write another story. Please tell me what you think...by reviewing, obviously. :)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter and its contents.**

'Well, well, well,' he said, smirking. 'I finally meet the littlest Potter.'

'Oh yay,' Lily replied, dully. 'What're you doing in my room, Malfoy?'

'Al told me to wait here. Plus, I had to meet you, after having heard so much. Funny how we didn't ever talk at Hogwarts,' Scorpius mused.

'I never liked you much and we were in different houses, so it's not that funny, really,' she said, irritably. She was extremely nervous. She had just applied to start Auror training. The Auror Department's response was due that day, and Scorpius was just annoying her with his presence.

Scorpius simply smiled at her reply. 'You never exactly knew me.'

'Merlin,' she muttered. 'You're not going to leave my room, are you?'

'Nope,' he said, smirking again.

Lily sighed. 'Fine. If you must know, I'd heard quite a lot about you from Al, James and a few of my friends.'

'And what had they said about me?'

'They said you were charming,' she said, rolling her eyes. 'It was always "Scorpius this, Scorpius that," and well, that just made me think you were…boring.'

He gaped at her. 'Boring?'

Lily shrugged in response.

'I am not boring!' he said, indignantly. 'In fact, I'm a very interesting person. If you-'

'Yeah, yeah, yeah,' she said, waving it off with her hand. 'If I bothered to get to know you, I'd say differently. Whatever. I honestly don't care right now. It's been wonderful talking to you. Now, please get out.' She gripped his hand and led him out. He opened his mouth to say something, but she slammed the door in his face. That pissed him off.

Al came bounding up the stairs and saw Scorpius outside Lily's bedroom. 'What're you doing?'

'Just had a conversation with your charming sister,' he said, annoyed.

Al laughed. 'She called you boring, didn't she?' Scorpius' dark look was qualified as a 'yes'. Still laughing, Al said, 'Don't take it personally, Scor. Lily's a really straightforward person. Besides, she likes people who are dicks…Take her taste in boyfriends, for example, Marcus Walters…you remember him?'

Scorpius wrinkled his nose. 'That git from Ravenclaw…the Beater?'

'Yeah. You know what an asshole he was right?'

'Yeah…'

'That's my point. But Merlin knows when she'll realize that the normal kind are the best for her,' Al said, shaking his head. 'Anyway, how come she chucked you out of her room? Usually, she'd spend her time making fun of you.'

'Dunno,' Scorpius said. 'She seemed fidgety.'

'Huh,' Al said. 'The last time Lily was fidgety was when she was expecting her Hogwarts letter. Eh, it doesn't matter anyway. Let's go down for lunch.' Al and Scorpius made their way to the kitchen to find Ginny laying the table, helped by Teddy. James was sitting on the counter and reading the paper.

'Hello, Scorpius,' Ginny greeted, warmly. She hugged him. Teddy smiled and just clapped him on the back as a greeting. James grunted. 'Where's Lily?' he asked.

'In her room,' Al replied.

'Still hasn't gotten out, huh?' Teddy sighed.

'No, why?'

'Her letter from the Auror Department, idiot,' James said. 'She applied last week. Today's when she's supposed to be getting her response.' Ginny left the kitchen to go check on her daughter.

'So that's why she was nervous,' Scorpius said.

'You met her?' James asked, sharply.

'Yeah. Why?'

'Nothing, nothing,' he muttered. James had never wanted Lily and Scorpius to meet. He knew how little thought Lily put in while choosing a boyfriend and Scorpius was known to be a pretty loose character. Their union, in his mind, would be most unholy.

Teddy, aware of James' fear, merely laughed. Al, unaware of anything, said, 'Can we eat?'

'Yes, you can,' came Ginny's voice from the door. Lily entered the kitchen about a minute later, looking pale. Her fingers were digging into her palms so hard, that they could bleed at any moment.

'Lil, relax,' Al said, through a mouthful of pork chops. She didn't even look at him. Quietly, she took her seat in between Teddy and James, both of whom were watching her amusedly. 'Well, you don't always get to experience a quiet Lily, right, Ted?' James asked, grinning. Lily glared at him, but did no more.

'Right you are, James. Let's cherish this moment,' Teddy said, also grinning. They were pulling Lily's leg in the hope that she would come up with some witty retort, as she always does. However, all she did was stare at her food, looking queasy. Teddy and James, visibly irritated that their plan didn't work, began eating furiously. Al was piling more food onto his plate. Ginny was eating while watching her daughter with amusement and concern. Scorpius, too, was enjoying his meal. At the same time, he watched Lily.

She was pretty. Not conventionally pretty, but pretty all the same. Her dark blue eyes were staring hard at her food, as though hoping she could become one with her pork chops. Her long, straight, brownish-red hair was left loose, with a fringe on one side of her face. She had a tiny, pointed nose that was very slightly upturned. All in all, Scorpius thought she looked great. She was, in his opinion, effortlessly pretty. _No wonder she was the talk of the school_, he thought.

He wondered why he had never come across her at Hogwarts much. True, he and Al were Slytherins and she was a Gryffindor, but the enmity existed only on the Quidditch field. He had seen her during Quidditch, though. But then, she was only a reddish blur. Why had he never bothered to get to know her? She probably wouldn't have thought he was boring if he had done so. _It's no matter_, he comforted himself, _there's time now. Lots of it, in fact._

**Thank you for reading. Remember to tell me what you think! :)**_  
><em>


	2. The Challenge

**Here's the next one. Please review. :)**

Lily sat with her head in her hands. She hadn't slept in days. Her letter still hadn't arrived, you see. It had been four days. To top it all, Scorpius Malfoy made it a point to always be in her presence. Not only was he in her presence, but he also insisted on commenting on her present state. 'You know, Lily, I got my letter from the Department within three days!'

'Good for you,' she muttered, with her head still bowed.

Scorpius smirked. 'It's been…what? A three day delay already? First they make you wait a week for the response, and then they delay by three days! Merlin, what is this world coming to?'

Lily lifted her head. She looked him straight in the eye and said, icily, 'It's been four days actually. And if you're trying to get me to hate you, Malfoy, there's no need. I already do.'

That stung him somewhere deep inside. But of course, he didn't let it show. The smirk still in place, he said, 'Well, actually, I'm conveying a subtle message to you.'

'What, that I'm probably not going to be allowed into Auror training?' she asked, with narrowed eyes. 'If you must know, that thought has crossed my mind more times than I care to admit. So, I don't need some dick warning me about it.'

'But I thought you preferred dicks.' That was, obviously, the wrong thing to say. If Lily's eyes had been narrowed before, they were nothing compared to the slits that they were now. Scorpius' smirk wavered under her death glare and he took an involuntary step backwards. Lily stood up, with her wand in her hand. She looked ready to kill.

Scorpius was a complete loss for words. Never had his mouth failed him like this. His mouth was a little open with shock…shock at how murderous she looked, and shock at how amazing she looked when she was murderous. The only thought that crossed his mind was, _Huh, maybe she could make a good Auror._

Fortunately for Scorpius, at the same moment that Lily raised her wand, Al entered the room. She was momentarily distracted as she glanced at her wide eyed brother. 'What the hell're you doing?' he shrieked, sounding like a girl.

Scorpius let out a sigh of relief. 'Let's just get out of here, Al,' he said, trying not to sound shaky. He saw a triumphant smirk form on Lily's face as she watched him leave. He slammed her door shut and bolted to Al's room.

'What the hell was happening?' Al asked again, impatiently.

Panting, Scorpius recounted the whole encounter.

'And here I was, thinking I was tactless,' Al said, smacking Scorpius' head. 'You really don't know when to shut your mouth, do you?'

'Well, excuse me if Lily happens to take offense to everything I say!'

'Explain to me how one doesn't take offense to what you said to her.'

Scorpius threw Al a dirty look. Curiously, Al asked, 'Why are you hanging around her so much anyway?'

'No reason in particular. I was bored,' Scorpius lied easily, shrugging.

'Look, you're my best mate,' Al said, seriously. 'But if you try anything with my sister, I will pull your guts out and stuff them down your throat, understand?'

Scorpius was a little taken aback. Albus Potter wasn't known to be the violent one. That was James. Well, actually, it was Lily, but he didn't know her that well yet. 'Alright, Al, relax. I won't try anything. But if something happens between us, it wouldn't bother you that much, would it?' Scorpius asked, laughing slightly to clam the tension.

'It would,' Al replied, coldly.

'C'mon, Al! Fine, I'll be completely honest with you. I've known your sister for like five days now. She's freaking hot, and I'd be stupid if I thought differently. And I love annoying her, because well, it's fun. If something happens between us, it wouldn't only be my fault! She'll feel the same way, too. I mean, it's not like I'll force her to do anything.' If Scorpius had thought that his little speech would calm Al down, he was mistaken, to say the least. The area just underneath his left eye came in contact with his best friend's fist. 'HOLY FUCK, AL WHAT IS THE MATTER WITH YOU?'

His hand still clenched, Al watched Scorpius press his hands to his face, swearing at the top of his voice. He had to admit, he felt a little satisfaction. But mostly, he felt sorry for Scorpius. He realized that he might have reacted harshly. 'Shit. Listen, Scor, I'm…er…sorry. I guess I reacted a tad bit harshly.'

'A tad bit?' Scorpius demanded, furiously. 'I'm going to kick your arse!' And with that, he launched himself at Al, and started punching his stomach. Al, of course, reacted defensively.

'Pathetic,' came a voice, drily, from the door. Al and Scorpius stopped fighting to see Lily leaning against the door frame, watching the two of them, her eyes filled with amusement. Al was on top of Scorpius, straddling his waist. On seeing Lily, Scorpius pushed Al off, with an angry, 'Get the hell off of me!'

Lily continued to watch as her brother and his best friend straightened out their clothes and stood quite far from each other. 'Well,' she said, controlling her laughter, 'I'm sorry for walking in on you. Merlin, you were going at it like dogs! Forgive me.'

At the looks of utter annoyance on their faces, Lily literally died laughing. 'Lil, get out,' Al said to his hysterical sister, impatiently.

'Um,' she said, shrugging, 'no.'

'What happened to the letter?' Scorpius asked, thinking it would shut her up.

She merely laughed. 'Ah, the letter. Well, I've decided I don't care anymore. I wasn't so keen on becoming an Auror anyway.'

'What the hell! You can't just change your mind like that!' Al yelled.

'Actually, dear brother, I can. It was your pussy of a mate who made me change my mind anyway.'

'Excuse me,' Scorpius began, but he was cut off by Al. 'What did you say to her?'

'It wasn't anything he said, in particular. It's just that he's been spending his time pissing me off, and I've done nothing about it. And it just didn't feel right not to react. And I'm not going to brood all my life just because I didn't get a stupid letter now, am I?' Lily said, raising her eyebrows and grinning at her brother.

'You know what, it's your life, I don't even care,' Al said, shaking his head.

Lily smiled more widely. She turned to leave, but stopped and said, 'Oh and a little piece of advice: next time you two want to fight, use your wands. You are wizards after all. But, excuse me for not realizing,' she said, her eyes glinting mischievously. She looked straight at Scorpius and said, 'Your wand probably isn't that powerful, if I'm not wrong.' Smirking, she left the room.

Al found the comment about Scorpius' "wand" unsavory. It disturbed him. He shook off the feeling in a few minutes, however.

Lily realized that she ought to live her life to the fullest, and not be bogged down by her not receiving a letter. And when she heard swearing from Al's room, she couldn't help herself from commenting. One more thing she couldn't help was staring at Scorpius. Merlin, did her look sexy with that bruise under his eye.

As for Scorpius, Lily's jibe at his "wand" amused him. It also lit in him some hope. Some? Nah, loads of hope. If he thought he'd liked the Lily he'd known for the past five days, he was going to love the real one. He took the jibe as a challenge. _Alright, Lily Potter, I'll prove to you just how powerful my "wand" is. Challenge accepted._

__**Thanks for reading! :)**


	3. Battle of the Smirks

Scorpius had a plan all worked out. He didn't care if Al would be pissed with him for going out with his sister. He knew that Al would accept it and calm down after a while.

Scorpius sat in the kitchen with an ice pack. He decided to leave the bruise on his face instead of charming it off. He thought it looked good on him. There was one person who heartily agreed.

He was alone in the Potter home, with Lily, of course. Something told him that she would come to the kitchen eventually, so there he was. And the something was right.

Lily entered the kitchen to find Scorpius holding an ice pack to his bruised face. She took a deep breath to steady herself and put on her usual smirk. 'Wand not working?'

Scorpius looked at her. He caught his breath and quickly let it go. She looked gorgeous. She was wearing shorts…extremely tiny ones, and a spaghetti top that fitted her perfectly. Her hair was left loose as usual, and she was smirking at him, her eyes glinting. Clearing his throat, he said, 'My wand's working perfectly fine, thank you very much. In fact, I could show you.' He winked at her and smirked. That was what he was going to do. He was going to make her come to him. He would just flirt mercilessly until she finally gave in.

_He wants to play? _Lily thought. _No problem._ 'I'd love that,' she said, biting her lip and approaching him.

_It seems to be working perfectly well, _Scorpius thought, surprised. _She's given up already._

_Look at him, _she thought, amusedly, _thinking I've fallen for him._

_Let me kick this up a notch_, he decided, grinning. 'Fuck,' he muttered, as he pressed the ice pack on to his face. In truth, it didn't hurt. Al had made sure it didn't hurt anymore, but Scorpius had wanted the bruise to stay.

_Pretty good attempt_, Lily thought, impressed. 'Here, I'll do it.' She took the ice pack out of his hands. She placed one hand on his cheek and she slowly pressed the ice pack on to his bruise with the other. She was smirking through it all, because the look on his face was worth capturing on a Muggle camera. _Your move, Malfoy. _

Scorpius hadn't expected Lily to ever be so close to him. Not never…just not ten minutes after he formulated his plan. _What do I do?_ he thought, frantically. He decided to do what he did best: just smirk. 'Well, this is fun,' he whispered, mischievously. Unconsciously, he moved his face closer to hers. So close, that they had barely a millimeter between them.

_Wow, he's going for the kill pretty fast,_ Lily observed. _Ah, well_. 'You know what I think will make you feel better?' she breathed, seductively.

'What?' he asked automatically, mesmerized by her eyes.

'Well,' she whispered, coming so close that now their lips were millimeters apart. 'Quidditch.' With that, she moved her face away and smirked. She had won.

Scorpius was again, at a loss for words. Only this girl did that to him. She had been so close. _Hm_, he thought_, this is going to be a lot of fun._ But his outsides were still recovering from the almost kiss. He shook his head and looked at her. She was smirking at him, with her eyebrows raised. 'Yeah,' he said, 'Quidditch.'

'Alright then. I'll see you outside,' she said, winking and departing.

_Merlin_, he thought. _I didn't know they made girls that hot. Or that sneaky. I let my guard down today. That's not going to happen from now on. Scorpius Malfoy, you, my friend, are going on the offense. And she will lose… so badly._

**Short, but necessary. And a huge thank you to all the wonderful reviewers! You guys are amazing. **  
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	4. An Interruption

**Personally, I don't like this chapter. I've got exams right now, so I seem unable to write properly. Anyway, tell me what you think please! :)**

'ALBUS! JAMES! SCORPIUS! LILY! GET DOWN HERE THIS INSTANT!'

James gulped. 'Okay, so we do the usual, yeah, Lil?'

Lily nodded. 'The usual.'

'What's the usual?' Scorpius and Al asked at the same time.

'You'll see,' she said, her eyes glinting. _Damn_, thought Scorpius, _she's gorgeous_. He followed Al downstairs, where a fuming Ginny Potter was glaring at her kids. 'What is the meaning of this?' she asked, in a menacing voice.

This time, Al gulped. James glanced sideways at his sister, who gave him the most imperceptible of nods. 'It wasn't us, Mum,' she said, solemnly.

'Oh, really?' Ginny asked, with mock belief.

'Yeah, really,' James said. Al looked thoroughly confused, as did Scorpius. 'Mum, d'you honestly think we'd spray paint the kitchen pink?'

'Yes.'

'Well, that's just rude, the fact that you don't trust us!'

'Okay, fine,' Lily said. 'I'll agree the spray painting seems like something we'd do, but c'mon Mum, d'you really think we'd fill the walls with those awful words? Is that how horrid you think we are?' She was giving her mother a piercing and innocent look. Ginny was accustomed to it, but she always fell for it. Sighing, she said, 'I know you did it. But it's alright I guess. Clean it up, though. Now,' she added, sternly, since nobody showed signs of moving. Immediately, they proceeded to the kitchen.

The kitchen was a mess. All the cooking utensils had been knocked over, as though a bull had rampaged through it. The walls, counters and cabinets were of a disgusting pink colour. And on every wall were words that made Ginny Potter's blood boil, although she used them herself.

'Nice work, Lil,' James said, tousling her hair. She pinched him so that he'd let go. Laughing, the two of them go to work. Scorpius and Al were busy admiring their handiwork. They hadn't taken part in the prank since they'd been playing Quiddtich.

'Aren't you twats going to help?' Lily snapped. They started helping, too. Ginny peeped in to check on them and said, 'You lot had better get this cleaned in an hour, Dad's coming home today.'

'What?' Al and James said, excited. 'That's right, he's coming, get this done quick,' she said, and left.

'Oh, this is ridiculous,' Scorpius said, irritated. He waved his wand and everything flew back into place. The original colour was restored to the kitchen and the swear words wiped off.

'Would it have killed you to've done that ten minutes ago?' Lily demanded.

'Yeah, then I wouldn't have had to put my hand in this shit!' James said, indicating some gooey liquid in a bucket. Grinning, Scorpius just shrugged. Shaking their heads, the Potter siblings made their way to their respective rooms, followed by Scorpius.

'I have to pee,' he told Al, and entered Lily's room, making sure that the two brothers didn't see.

'Ah, Malfoy,' Lily said, smiling.

'Lily,' he said, tilting his head a bit and grinning. 'I think we've reached a first name basis, don't you?'

'Meh,' she said, nonchalantly. 'Names don't matter anyway. So what brings you to my room, again?'

'I thought that we should pick up where we left off,' he said, sounding as though he couldn't care less. _Keep it smooth, Scorpius_, he thought.

A smirk spread across Lily's face. _My turn_, she thought. 'Oh, I'd love to.'

_That was fast…again_, he thought. Smirking, he went closer to her. They were as close as they had been the previous day in the kitchen. Her eyes were filled with amusement and his eyes were too. _Okay, Lil, let's see what your reaction'll be to something actually happening. _Again, he moved his face closer to hers, and she did the same.

'What the fuck,' said a deadly voice from the door. Their eyes widened in horror as they saw James at the door. He was glaring daggers at Scorpius who was staring right back, albeit slightly scared.

'What was happening?' he asked, quietly.

'Nothing, James,' Lily said, sounding extremely normal. Scorpius looked at her. She was a pretty amazing liar, he had to hand it to her. 'Scorpius had to pee, and you know how disgusting Al's loo is so he came here. And I didn't want him to use my loo-'

'So I decided to annoy here for a bit,' Scorpius finished.

James looked like he didn't believe the story one bit, but decided to let it be. 'Fine. But I see you two ever within two feet of each other, there will be hell. Understand?'

'Yep,' Scorpius said, automatically.

'No,' Lily said, her temper visibly rising. 'I will be within two feet of him if I want to. I'll even shag him if I want to, you don't get a fucking say in it. Understand?'

James glared at his sister and left the room.

'So,' Scorpius said, smirking. 'You'd shag me, huh?'


	5. Game Over

It had been two months since Scorpius and Lily's first meeting. The game was still going on, with each of them having their wins. Scorpius, however, was getting a bit sick of it. He was the one who started it, but now, he felt it was too childish. The fact that he was always nose to nose with Lily was fine, but the fact that it didn't go any further than that was infuriating. Lily felt the same way.

A lot had happened in the two months…Lily got her acceptance letter from the Auror Department a week after her father came back home from a mission. She never did tell Scorpius why it came so late, but she got it, and that was the point. James had moved out of the Potter house, and was living in his own apartment. Al and Scorpius, too, were looking for an apartment. They, of course, wanted to live separately, but close by. Ginny was not taking this well, and Harry remained quiet.

One afternoon, at lunch, James announced that they were throwing a party for Lily. Everyone laughed at her horrified expression. 'Relax, Lil,' James chortled, 'you didn't get engaged or anything. It's just that my little sister's all grown up now, and you're about to start Auror training, so we want to have a sendoff.'

'Mum and Dad won't embarrass you, don't worry,' Al said, grinning at his parents.

'It's not them I'm worried about,' Lily said, also grinning. 'C'mon, can you do the party some other time?'

'Lil, you realize that they're just informing you about the party? You don't have a say in it, actually. Everything's already been done,' Scorpius said, laughing.

'You're all going to hell,' Lily said, slightly pissed off.

'Lil,' Harry said, laughing. 'It's just us family. No one else.'

'You don't think that your Gran'll let you rest without having a sendoff party, do you love?' Ginny asked, sceptically.

'Fine,' Lily grumbled. 'But if it's formal, I'm slitting all your throats!' They all assured her that they want their throats intact, so at four o' clock, she was in her room, getting ready. As much as she hated going to her parents' idea of a party, she loved getting dressed up. Of course, she'd never admit that to anyone, except her cousin Rose.

Lily was brushing her long hair, when Rose entered her room, looking all too happy. 'Hey, Lil!' She bear-hugged Lily, who started to laugh uncontrollably.

'Do you have to do that every time, Rose?'

'Absolutely,' she said, grinning. She looked great. She was wearing a green dress that ended just below her knee and black high heels, a very modest outfit. Lily had her own style. She was wearing a spaghetti brown dress, with Bohemian designs on it that ended a few inches above her knee. Her heels, too, were of a Bohemian style. All in all, the cousins looked beautiful.

'How come you got all dressed up?' Lily asked, already knowing the answer.

'What do you mean? I always dress up,' Rose said, avoiding her cousin's eyes.

'Oh, sure, Rosie,' Lily said, winking. She coughed and the cough sounded strangely like 'Lorcan!', earning her a glare from her cousin.

'Stop it, Lil, nothing's happening between us.'

'Nothing, except the fact that you're madly in love with each other, everyone can see it, but you two won't admit it.'

Rose glared at Lily for a full minute, before saying, 'I guess that sums it up.' Lily gave her a triumphant smile. 'Anyway,' she said briskly, 'tonight's your night!'

'What?' said Rose, narrowing her eyes. 'Tonight's your night actually.'

'No, I mean tonight's the night you two are going to profess your undying love for each other,' Lily said, smirking.

'That's not going to happen.'

'Oh, Rose, you act sometime as though you don't know me at all.' With that, Lily left her room, followed closely by a suspicious Rose.

Meanwhile, Scorpius and Al were hanging out in Al's room. 'I don't want to dress up!' Al groaned.

'Who asked you to? Lily said she didn't want anything formal,' Scorpius said.

'Not Lily, Scor. Rose.'

'Rose?'

'Yeah. She's got this obsessive need for everyone to dress up.'

'Well, I'm doing no such thing,' Scorpius said, resolutely. He was wearing a t-shirt and boxers, and was planning on going to the party thus. Al simply groaned.

James entered Al's room, in a shirt and jeans, looking pretty good. 'Why aren't you two dressed yet?'

'We don't want to get dressed, that's why,' Al said, grumpily. 'It's just a bunch of aunts and uncles, what's the need to get all fancy?'

'Oh, All, you poor, poor twit,' James said, shaking his head. 'You don't think we're staying here all night, do you? There's a party back at my place in a couple of hours.'

Almost immediately, Scorpius and Al got dressed. Both of them wore their best shirts and stood in front of the mirror, examining themselves.

The door to his room opened again, and this time it was Rose who entered, followed by Lily. Scorpius couldn't talk for a few seconds when he saw Lily, she looked gorgeous.

'What, Rose?' Al asked, grumpily again.

'Just wanted to see if you looked presentable,' she said, grinning.

'Clearly not,' Lily added, looking at Al and smirking. He threw her a dirty look.

'Let's get this party over with so we can get to James' place,' he snapped. He left his room, followed by Rose. Lily and Scorpius stayed behind.

'You look amazing,' Scorpius said, smirking. He had given up the game. It was over. Lily had apparently given it up, too, as she said, smirking, 'You too.' Immediately, she darted for the mirror and scrutinized herself.

'What're you doing that for?' Scorpius asked, confused. She looked perfect, there was no need for her to look at herself so closely.

'Well, a mirror is made specifically for this purpose.'

'But you look great! Now, c'mon, let's go down.' They both headed down (after Lily finished examining herself) and mingled with the crowd, which consisted of Lily's family and a few close friends. Scorpius' parents were there, too. They had Flooed in from Birmingham, where they had been staying with Astoria's parents. Scorpius left to meet them.

'Lily! Congratulations, darling,' Hermione said, hugging her niece.

The next hour and a half passed in the same way. Lily was hugged by every single person in the room. Everyone told her how proud they were of her. Finally, she found herself next to Lysander Scamander. They were chatting like good old friends.

Lily didn't know that she was being watched closely by a certain person. 'Oi, Rose!' Scorpius hissed. Rose had been talking to Lorcan, when she turned to Scorpius. 'What?'

'Come here for a second.'

'What?' she asked again.

'Why's Lily talking to Lysander?'

'What?' Rose asked, confused.

'That seems to be the only thing you say!'

'Sorry, Scor,' she said, grinning. 'I just don't get it. What's wrong with them talking?'

'He's her ex, isn't he?' Scorpius snapped.

'Well, yeah. But that doesn't mean they aren't still friends…why do you even care?' Rose gasped after she said. 'You like Lily?'

'What?' Scorpius said, trying to sound irritated. 'No. You do.'

Rose just gave him a delighted look and resumed her conversation with Lorcan. Scorpius shook his head and went to find James. 'What's up?' James asked.

'Forgot about your party, did you?'

'Not at all, mate. How about we go there now?'

'Finally!' Scorpius said, grinning. All the 'kids' in the Potter house, after bidding everyone goodbye, Apparated to James' apartment. The party was already in full swing. His place had become like a Muggle club. Lily and Lysander hadn't left the Potter house yet.

They arrived half an hour later. Lily decided to take it easy on the drinks. She found Hugo and began catching up with him over the loud music. Scorpius was fine with that. He himself was having a lot of fun flirting with girls he didn't even know.

After about four hours of non-stop partying, Scorpius decided that he had had enough. He wanted to say bye to Lily, but he couldn't find her anywhere. So he headed back to his newly found apartment, just across the hall from James'.

Fifteen minutes later, a panting Lily entered his apartment. 'Hey, Scor.'

'Hey,' he said, smiling widely. 'What're you doing here?'

'Ugh,' she said, smiling slightly. 'I needed to get away from all the people telling me how proud they were of me. It felt nice, but also kind of insulting.'

Scorpius laughed. 'And what makes you think that I won't tell you that I'm proud of you?'

'Hm, let's see, because I'm not your daughter, sister, niece or granddaughter,' she replied, grinning.

'Ah. Ditched poor Lysander, huh?'

Lily gave him a questioning look, to which he said, 'You two seemed pretty close today.'

Lily rolled her eyes. 'We are pretty good friends, you know.'

'But he's your ex.'

'So?'

'So,' Scorpius said, as though trying to explain the obvious. 'Doesn't that make it a little weird? To top it all, that bloke is the definition of weird.'

She rolled her eyes again. 'No, it doesn't. It's not like we had that great a relationship anyway. We went out only for like…five months.'

'Hm…why'd you break up, anyway?'

'Uh, well, he was too close to the family. It was like he was my brother, you know. Felt like incest. I mean, he was like best friends with Al and Rose.'

'Hang on,' Scorpius said, his eyebrows furrowed. 'Does that mean you wouldn't go out with me? Because I'm Al's best friend?'

'You,' Lily said, smirking, 'are a special case. I'd make an exception.'

That was all he had to hear. He pulled her towards him, and kissed her. _Finally!_ they both thought. It had been worth the wait. Neither of them said anything. They had a wonderful night together, if you know what I mean. Scorpius even thought of it as his best night ever.

Al was slumped in James' apartment. 'Where's Lily?'

'Dunno,' Lorcan shrugged. Rose smiled, she had a feeling she knew where Lily was. And she knew that she wouldn't want to be interrupted. She re-adjusted herself on Lorcan's lap, and fell into a blissful sleep.

Scorpius, too, was having blissful sleep. The next morning, Lily woke up early…unnaturally early. It was 5 a.m. She was never an early riser. Scorpius had his arms around her and was fast asleep. She untangled herself from his arms. She smiled as the previous night came rushing back to her. The smile was, however, etched with sadness. She kissed Scorpius before she left, her eyes filled with despair.

Scorpius awoke about three hours later. He stretched, and found that he was alone in bed. He looked around his house for Lily, but didn't find her. Thinking that she had probably gone back home, he had a bath and dressed. Then, he Apparated to the Potter house. Instead of greeting Al first, as he always did, he entered Lily's room. It was empty of all her possessions. All her posters, clothes and books were gone. So was her trunk. The only thing that remained was her bed and her study table.

Aghast, he ran to Al room. He was snoring. 'Al! Al, wake up!'

'Whazzyourproblem?' Al grumbled.

'Lily's gone!'

'Yeah, so?' he said, sitting up and rubbing his eyes.

'What d'you mean "yeah so"? She's gone! All her stuff's gone too!'

'Well, obviously. Did you think she'd leave her stuff here.' Seeing the look of confusion of his best friend's face, he said, 'She didn't tell you, did she?'

'Tell me what?'

'The reason she got her letter late. All Auror training's being carried out in Scotland now. They had to make arrangements before they could send the letters. She's gone there for a year. Her Portkey was at six. Why'd you think I'm here?'

Scorpius took a few minutes to let that sink in. _Scotland_, he thought. 'When's she coming back?'

'A year and a half…maybe two. She isn't even allowed visits, you know? It's going to be like prison for her. But I guess we need really good Aurors or something. Anyway,' Al asked, curiously. 'Why do you care?'

'I don't.'

**Okay, I felt like writing again, even though I have a very important exam tomorrow. :P**

**As always, thanks for reading, and tell me what you think! :)**


	6. Knowing and Understanding

'I don't think I want Lily to become an Auror anymore,' Ginny said, sighing.

'I know what you mean,' Scorpius muttered. Al looked at him curiously. He had been acting strangely for the past two days.

'What does she mean?' Al asked, dimly. Ginny, having tact, had figured out what was going on a day ago. She didn't know what happened between them, but she knew there were some feelings. She gave Al a pointed look, telling him to drop it.

Harry walked into the kitchen, a letter in his hand. Running his hands through his hair, he said, 'I don't know what's gotten into them…the Aurors in training aren't even allowed to send letters! It's like cutting them off from the rest of the world.'

'Why can't you do something, Dad? I mean, you're head of the Auror Department,' Al said.

'Al, Auror Department only deals with trained Aurors…the ones in training aren't part of our Department until they're done, we just send them their letters. Ask Scorpius, he knows.'

Scorpius looked at Al and nodded. He'd finished his Auror training a year ago and had wanted to take a well-deserved break.

'We're going to miss her birthday,' Al said. 'You know how she hates that.'

Sighing again, Ginny said, 'There's nothing we can do anyway. She'll come back in a year. I still don't know why they've got to go through such isolated training though.'

'There was a break in at Gringotts,' Scorpius said, blandly. 'They don't know who did it. Loads of gold was stolen.'

'So obviously, they suspect something Dark,' Harry finished.

'Merlin,' Al said, in a low voice. 'Things are starting to get screwed up again. C'mon Scor, let's have a game of Quidditch. All this is too serious for me to hear.'

Grinning half-heartedly, Scorpius followed Al into his backyard. 'What's going on with you, mate?' Al asked, immediately.

'Wha-nothing. I thought we were playing Quidditch?'

'Later. You've been acting like shit since I told you that Lily's gone…what happened?'

'Nothing, Al. Nothing happened. I'm a little surprised, that's all. We were pretty good friends, and it's sad I won't see her for a long time that's all.'

Al didn't look convinced, but shrugged all the same. 'Fine. Let's head back inside.'

'Al. Quidditch.'

'Not in the mood, really.'

Scorpius rolled his eyes. 'Fine. I think I'll head home, Mum should be back by now. Haven't spoken to her properly in ages.'

'Sure. See you later, then,' Al said, waving. Scorpius Apparated to Malfoy Manor.

'I was starting to think you'd forgotten me,' Astoria said, beaming at her son. She hugged him so tightly that he had to gasp for air.

'Hi, Mum,' he said, panting and smiling. 'Dad's not at home?'

'No, he had some work. I think you'll find Harry's gone too. I think they have a lead on who robbed Gringotts. Anyway, that doesn't matter, how are you, darling?'

Scorpius looked down at his mother (he was tall, to say the least) and smiled. It didn't quite reach his eyes as he said, 'Fine, Mum. I'm absolutely fine.'

Astoria smiled at her son, shaking her head. 'Why is it that you kids think that you can fool your mums?'

'What?' he asked, utterly confused.

'I know you aren't fine, I just asked as a formality! Now tell me, what's been bothering you?'

'Nothing! Merlin, why d'you think something's bothering me?'

'Well,' Astoria said, pretending to think. 'I know your smile, and it wasn't genuine this time. I know you've been really down the past two days…ever since Lily left, oddly. And it helped that Al told me something was wrong.'

'That Al doesn't know when to shut his mouth,' Scorpius muttered, angrily.

'He's a sweet child. And both of you can be extremely stupid at times, but this time, he wasn't. You, on the other hand, are,' she said, folding her arms and sitting back.

'I am not being stupid, okay, Mum? Why does something always have to be wrong?'

'It's Lily, isn't it?' Astoria said, knowingly.

'What? No.'

'Scorpius.'

'Fine, yeah. How'd you know?' he asked, genuinely curious.

'Unlike you, darling, I seem to have eyes.'

'So?'

Astoria rolled her eyes. 'I saw how you looked at her during the party. Ginny and I were watching you two. Personally, and Ginny agrees, you two make a wonderful couple!'

'Mum,' Scorpius said, a little disgusted and uneasy. As much as she was trying to help, it's a little weird to hear your own mum talking about your relationships.

'Oh, come one, Scor,' she said, impatiently. 'I know something went on between you two and I want to know what.'

'Why?'

'So I can help you feel better obviously. I'm your mum! It's what I'm supposed to do! You may be twenty now, but you're sometimes still as dumb as you were when you were ten.'

'Well, that makes me feel better,' he said, nastily. Astoria merely raised her eyebrows and motioned for him to continue. 'Merlin. Alright, we had a…thing.'

'You had a thing?'

'Yep.'

Astoria was trying to control her laughter. 'Scor, if you two made love, or whatever it is you're calling it nowadays, you can say that.'

'Oh, Merlin,' Scorpius said, uncomfortable as hell. He stood up and said, 'Okay, Mum, maybe talking to you isn't the best idea.'

'Why not?' she wailed, slightly hurt.

'Because you're my mum! And it's weird!'

'You're making it weird, Scorpius. Now stop yelling, sit down and tell me everything,' she said, sternly.

'Okay,' he said, obediently, and slightly scared. 'Fine. So yeah, we…er…made lo- oh screw it. We did it, okay Mum? On the night of the party. Then she left, without saying goodbye. She just fucking left!'

'I'll pretend I didn't hear that one word,' she said. Running her hands through her son's hair, she said, 'Did you ever think that maybe that was her way of saying goodbye?'

'She's not like that, Mum. You know that. You've known her longer that I have. If she wants to say something, she will,' he said, angrily. He was just so angry with Lily. How could she just leave him? Why did she even sleep with him if she was just going to ditch him?

'You're right,' Astoria said, comfortingly. 'I do know Lily. And that's why I can tell you this: she's scared.'

'Sorry?'

'She scared, Scor.'

'Of what?'

'You don't understand, love. Everyone likes her, you know? She's Harry Potter's daughter. I don't think you know how many guys she's been with just because of that.'

'Hang on, why do you know how many guys she's been with?'

'A girl can't tell her own mum everything now, can she? She tells someone else's mum because she knows she won't do anything,' Astoria said, smiling, remembering her own adolescence. 'Anyway, as I was saying, no one knows her for what she is. Well, except for all of us. She's been screwed over more times than you can imagine, so she doesn't believe that there's anyone nice anymore. You might think that it's a stupid reason, Scor, but it's true. So, now she doesn't let herself fall for guys…she's pretty nasty to people who don't know her.'

'Huh,' Scorpius said knowing that her nastiness to strangers part was true. 'Okay. So?'

Astoria took a deep breath as though her son's dullness was a threat to her life. 'Darling, I think she's fallen for you, but she doesn't want to admit it to herself. That's why she chose that night, so that she could just escape in the morning. Do you understand now?'

Scorpius was frowning. 'So what you're saying is, she's fallen for me, but is too scared to realize it, so she's run away to try and get over me?'

'Er…well, she went away because she had training mostly, but yeah, you got my point.'

'And how in hell does that make me feel better?' Scorpius demanded of his mother.

'Isn't it comforting to know that there's one person on this planet who knows what's going on with you?' she asked, smiling.

Scorpius stared at her, shook his head and smiled back. 'Thanks, Mum…for understanding, I guess. And for not getting pissed that I did it.'

Looking up at her grinning son, she said, 'Honestly, Scor, I'm not as unaware as your Dad…I think I know inside that you've done "it", apparently, quite a few times.'

'You're smart,' he commended, giving her a broad grin and a hug as she smacked him lightly on the head.

'Now, don't worry so much, my broody little son,' she said, ruffling his hair. 'She'll be back in a year and she'll realize that you two are so cute together and then everything'll be fine. Until then, find a job.'

He shook his head as her motherly instincts kicked in again. Frowning again, he said, 'What makes you think I'll still love her after a year?'

Astoria smile was so wide that her lips were in danger of tearing. 'You said it yourself, Scor. You love her.'

* * *

><p><strong>So, what'd you think? Do tell. :)<strong>

**And all those who have reviewed till now- Allways-happy, , Eliza Jane Kelley, capery, bets2010, Annabella Prinx, Lily887787- you are such wonderful people, did you know that? **

**And, Eliza Jane Kelley, I'm sorry, but I just had to do that. My mind works in funny ways. :P**


	7. Diary of a Fashionista

It was Christmas. Lily's birthday had passed dully in August. The whole family had missed her. And now, on the holiday spent most joyously by her family, she was absent.

'I never realized how much Lily talked till now,' Teddy said, as he lay on the couch.

James nodded in agreement, with a small smile on his face. 'Yeah, and how she'd screw us if we didn't get her a decent enough present.'

'You mean how she'd screw you,' Al corrected. 'Because we always get her something brilliant.'

'Well, neither of you have to get her anything this time,' Scorpius said, shrugging.

Teddy sighed. 'Yeah, it's kind of sad. But hey, next year around this time, we'll have Lily back.'

The Potter boys smiled at the thought and began a new conversation. Scorpius tuned it out. _What would next year be like?_ he thought. Would he be with Lily? Or would they not be talking to each other? That led him to think of what he would do when he saw her again…would he be pissed off? Or delighted? Or a mix of both?

_What if she wants to forget about it?_ he wondered, a little fearfully. _Nah, that can't be, Mum said she likes me. _Scorpius couldn't help but laugh at how childish that sounded. That caused Al, James and Teddy to give him weird looks.

Clearing his throat, he said, 'Er, yeah, just thinking about something. Listen, I'm heading home now…loads of work to catch up on. I'll see you lot tomorrow.'

He Disapparated, leaving three extremely confused men in his wake. On reaching home, he stretched and saw that his house was a complete mess. As he bent down to pick up a _Witch Weekly_ magazine (don't ask why he subscribes to those), he heard a loud pop from behind him and he jumped about a foot. 'Al!'

'Yeah,' Al said, looking angry.

Sensing his mate's temper, Scorpius said jokingly, 'You always did Apparate very loudly.'

'Ha ha, Scor. That's funny. You want to know what else is funny? The fact that you have "loads of work to catch up on", apparently. Tell me, mate, since when do you work?'

'Ah. Yes. Well. Hm.'

Al glared at Scorpius. 'You know, it's fine if you have issues you don't want to talk about, but when my mum knows, I think I get to know too!'

'Eh?'

'Don't eh me!'

'What?'

'Don't what me!'

'Albus!'

'What?'

'Bloody hell, what does your mum know?'

'She knows why you've been acting like a fucking girl all these days!'

'Excuse me?'

'You heard me.'

'I've been acting like a girl. Explain that to me, Al.'

'Well, you know, girls tend to at depressed and shit…at certain times,' Al mumbled.

Shuddering, Scorpius said, 'So it would've hurt to just say that I've been acting depressed?'

'Aha! So you admit you've been acting depressed,' he said, triumphantly.

'Merlin, Al. I haven't been acting depressed okay? In fact, I'm feeling brilliant. And why does your mum think I'm depressed?'

'She wouldn't tell me,' Al grumbled. 'She said you'd tell me.'

'There's nothing to tell. And how does she know?'

'I don't know! She said something about how a mum always knows or something.'

Scorpius gulped. Ginny Potter knew. His mum had been right. Every single mother knew what was going on with him. Which possibly means that Harry Potter also knows. _Oh Merlin!_

'Scor? Scor! Scorpius Malfoy!' Al yelled, slapping his face.

'What? What happened?' he said, distractedly.

'You spaced out for a bit there, mate. You sure you're alright?' Al asked, concerned.

'Yeah, yeah. Fine.'

'Okay, for the last fucking time, you dick, just tell me,' Al said, exasperatedly. 'You've been acting really shitty. Your house is a mess, and I know for a fact that you're a neat freak. You've been spacing out a lot. You randomly disappear. You seem to be under the impression that you have a job. And why the hell do you have so many Witch Weekly magazines?'

'They're entertaining,' Scorpius said, slightly defensively.

'Entertaining, my bum!' Al said, snatching the one in his hand. 'You call this shit entertaining? Merlin, Scor, you're going mental. I swear we should- ooh, look I'm in it!'

'Yeah?' Scorpius said, interestedly. They both read the article about how Albus Potter, true to his father, devoted his life to helping others by becoming a Healer.

'I look a bit off in this picture,' Al said, examining it from all angles.

'Yeah, I don't think you'd had enough sleep,' Scorpius agreed.

'Maybe next time, I could ask them to have a photo shoot or something, you know? So I can look good.'

'Yeah, that'd be awesome. Get Dennis Creevey, that old bloke, to take the pictures. Best photographer, he is. And maybe take the glasses off…they make you look serious.'

'Mmm, you're right,' Al said, seriously. Then suddenly, as though someone had electrocuted the pair of them, they looked horrified.

'Was I just giving you fashion advice?' Scorpius asked, aghast.

'YOU SEE WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU READ _WITCH WEEKLY_!' Al screeched.

'Relax, you fucking banshee,' Scorpius snarled. 'No one has to know about this, duh.'

'But this is exactly my point!' Al hissed. 'You're not being yourself and you're transferring that to me!'

'C'mon, Al, to be fair, you were always a bit of a fashion lover,' Scorpius said, grinning.

'You think this is fucking funny? Scor, I don't know what's going on with you and Lily that's made you so…so-!'

'So what?' Scorpius growled.

'Tell me what happened.'

'Fine. Your sister and I had a nice shag. Happy?'

Al remained silent. It took a full three minutes for that to sink in, and another three minutes for him to process what he had heard. After all that, he still remained speechless.

'Who's spacing out now?' Scorpius muttered. Taking a deep breath, he said, 'Listen Al, last time we talked about anything to do with your sister, we ended up beating each other up. So obviously I didn't want to tell you. And yeah, I've sort of got feelings for her, and I think she does too. But she ditched me. I did absolutely nothing wrong, alright?'

'She ditched you?' Al said, quietly.

'Yeah. She left the next day without telling me anything.'

More silence…and then Al said something that shocked Scorpius so much that his eyes almost popped out of their sockets. 'That bitch.'

'What?'

'Well, I don't mean that,' Al said. 'She's my sister. But she really is an idiot sometimes.'

'I'm sorry, I don't quite get your drift…?' Scorpius said, still astonished.

'She's stupid! She isn't serious about anything! Except for maybe the whole Auror thing. The minute something gets serious, she just runs away. Merlin, she's stupid.'

'Huh, my mum told me something along the same lines…she's scared of relationships or some shit like that.'

'Hang on,' Al said, his eyes narrowing. 'Your mum knew before I did?'

'Erm…yeah.'

'What the fuck, Scor!'

Scorpius laughed. 'Sorry, Al, she's my mum. Did you give birth to me?'

'I thank Merlin I didn't. You're a fucking disappointment.'

Grinning, Scorpius said, 'I'm glad you understand. Now, you aren't going to punch me?'

'For shagging my sister? Well, I hate you for that. And part of me wishes you hadn't told me, you stupid fucker,' Al said, grumpily.

'What!' Scorpius yelled. 'You're the one who went all freaky on me until I told you!'

'Eh, well.'

'Don't you eh well me!'

'Shut it,' Al said, rolling his eyes. 'I guess somewhere deep inside, I knew this would happen, you know? I know you both, and I'd always had a feeling you'd be good for each other. You're both equally screwed up.'

'Aw, Al,' Scorpius said, with mock flattery. 'Aren't you the world's greatest Seer!'

'Shut up, Scor. So,' Al said, looking around, 'we'd better clean this dump up, huh? Wouldn't want this depressed soul surrounded by these impure texts.'

Laughing, Scorpius said, 'You know, sometimes, you remind me of James.'

Suddenly, Al squealed with excitement.

'What the hell, Al? Don't go fashion on me again.'

'No, no,' Al said, grinning broadly. 'Promise me I'll be around when you tell James.'

* * *

><p><strong>First of all, if you wonderful readers find any grammatical, spelling or any other kind of errors, I'm sorry. I didn't proof read it because I was lazy and just wanted to update. <strong>

**Next, thank you for reading and leave me a review please! :)**

**Oh, and it gets a little interesting from the next chapter, I assure you.**


	8. Three Simple Rules

'If you value your balls even a little bit, Al, you'll stop smiling now.'

Al didn't stop. He couldn't help it. He had convinced Scorpius to tell James about him and Lily, and now they were standing outside his doorstep, waiting. 'Sorry, Scor,' he said, not sounding sorry at all. 'It's just hilarious. James' face'll go through so many different stages.'

'Is that why you got the camera?' Scorpius asked, annoyed.

'Of course. Ah, here comes the fun.'

James answered his door and looked curiously between the two of them. 'What?'

'Merlin James, aren't you going to let your dear brother in?'

'No, what do you want?'

'James!'

'Ugh, fine. Stop screaming!'

'I wasn't screaming.'

'Were too.'

'Were not!'

'Oh, shut it, will you?' Scorpius snapped, putting an end to their bickering. 'You act like a bloody married couple.'

'Careful now, Scor, we wouldn't want something bad to happen, would we?' Al said, warningly.

Scorpius rolled his eyes. 'Anyway, James, I've got to tell you something.'

'Why?' James wailed. On seeing the weird expressions on the other two's faces, he said, sighing, 'It's just that I'm a brilliant listener…and I give great advice. So, everyone thinks it's okay to just come and tell me their problems. I have a life too, you know. But I guess that's the price you pay for being awesome.'

'No, the price you pay is your brains,' Al said, rolling his eyes.

'Er, yeah, whatever,' Scorpius said, a little nervously. 'Don't worry, what I have to say is more like information.'

'Alright, then.'

'Okay, so. Um, well. The thing is…honestly I don't want to tell you but…Lily and I had a thing…and yeah, that's about it.'

'I think you missed out the "I love her" part,' Al said, pretending to be helpful and smirking. Scorpius glared at him before turning to James, who had the most peculiar expression on his face. He seemed to be having an internal battle…one eye was narrowed, while the other one was wide…one foot was shaking, while the other remained still.

'James?' Scorpius asked, a little afraid. Al, meanwhile, was taking a picture to, as he said, capture the moment.

James looked at Scorpius, thankfully his features had settled down. 'You realize that by telling me this, you have a guaranteed kick in the cock?' he asked, in a bored, business-like voice.

'I guess,' Scorpius said, smiling slightly, as that punishment was way less than what he'd expected.

'Okay, we've settled that. The cock-kicking shall happen at any point, you shan't be forewarned. Got it?'

'Yep.'

'Hm. Now, on to more important subjects,' James said, now looking pained. 'Why the hell did you tell me?'

'What?'

'WHAT?' Al demanded, as he had the pants shocked off of himself.

'Al, relax mate,' James said. 'But seriously, why?'

'Al told me too,' Scorpius complained.

'Merlin, Scor!' James said, exasperatedly. 'Why would you listen to Albus of all people?'

'Excuse me?' Al said, annoyed.

'Shut up, Al. Now, Scor, there are three thing you should never, ever do. I mean never! One: Don't ever listen to Al. Two: Don't ever shag my sister. Three: If you do, don't fucking tell me! Understand?'

Scorpius, shocked at first, grinned broadly. 'No problem, mate. I can do that.'

'Well, this just sucks!' Al yelled, extremely annoyed now. 'You're not even going to kick his arse?'

'Did you?' James asked.

'No, I thought you would!'

'Well, I'm not going to…except a little.'

'This isn't fair!'

'By all means, do what you want with him then!'

'Maybe I will!'

'Fine!'

'HEY!' Scorpius yelled. 'Neither of you own me alright? If you kick my arse, I will kicks yours too!'

'Yeah, yeah, yeah,' James said, shrugging. 'Anyway, you two together then?'

'Who?'

'You and the Minister, who do you think, you twat?'

'Oh, right…no, she-she left.'

'Ran away?'

'Well, not really, she had training.'

'Good excuse, eh? Let me guess, you're currently very pissed off with her.'

'Absolutely.'

'Don't blame you, mate.'

'Neither do I,' said a voice, making them all jump.

'Andrew! What the hell, mate!' James yelled.

'I was bored! So I thought I'd pop in…saw you guys were having a pretty intense discussion, so I kept quiet,' said Andrew Miles, one of James' friends from Hogwarts.

'You didn't have to scare us to death, you know,' Al grumbled.

'Pussys,' Andrew muttered, grinning. 'So, you guys were talking about Lily, eh?'

'Yeah,' they three of them said.

'Hmm, your sister's hot, mate,' he said to James, thoughtfully. 'I'd do her.'

Andrew received two disgusted glares and one of mingled disgust and fury. 'You fucker, she's my sister,' James said, scrunching up his face with disgust.

'Eurgh,' Al said.

'Actually, come to think of it,' Scorpius said. 'Every girl's probably some bloke's sister.'

'That's awful,' Al said. 'You're a cruel man, Scor.'

'Well, I just wouldn't go to think of it that way,' James said, shuddering.

'Got any food, James?' Andrew asked.

'In the kitchen, duh.'

As Andrew made his way to the kitchen, Scorpius felt immense pain in his prized area. 'FUCKING HELL!' he yelled. It was such pain…he didn't think anyone could ever feel such pain.

James shrugged, grinning. 'Yeah, well, I told you it'd be a surprise…so SURPRISE!'

* * *

><p><strong>A short one, but I hope you all like it. Remember when I said it gets interesting from this chapter? Well, I was wrong. :P But I'll make it interesting, I promise you! Anyway, thanks for reading and please review! :)<strong>


	9. The Only One Eligible

"_WITCH WEEKLY'S TOP TEN!_

Witches, are you searching for the right one? Well, search no more! This week we give you not only the one, but the perfect one. Here are Witch Weekly's Top Ten Most Eligible Bachelors!

1: **James Potter**. As you all know, he is the oldest son of Harry Potter and Ginny Weasley-Potter. Witches, you'd better get a move on, this precious one could be off the 'bachelors' list extremely soon!

2: **Scorpius Malfoy**. Mysterious and calculating, this Malfoy has always given me the chills. Now rumour has it he's with someone, so ladies, what do we do at a time like this? Break them up!

3: **Albus Potter**. Another son of Harry Potter and Ginny. He'll treat you with love and care, just the way he does with all his grateful patients. He's a good catch, ladies!

4: **Hugo Weasley**. He is the son of Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger…good looking and funny too! A wonderful combination, don't you think?"

Lily couldn't help but laugh. She didn't manage to get through all the ten. _The journalists nowadays_ _really are bitches_, she thought, shaking her head. If she'd read on, she'd find that all the eligible bachelors in England were related to her…except for one.

Sighing, Lily stretched and threw her dorm mate's copy of Witch Weekly away. She felt awful. Not only did she miss her family, she missed Scorpius. True, she had only one night with him and it was all her fault, but she couldn't stop feeling sorry for herself. She flung herself on her bed and checked the time…4:45 a.m.

'Fuck,' she said, softly. She had to be up and about in another 15 minutes and she hadn't slept all night. In fact, she hadn't slept in the past 7 months. Thoughts about an angry Scorpius plagued her dreams. She woke up extremely scared once because she dreamt that Scorpius used the Cruciatus Curse on her, before killing her.

_I shouldn't have done that…I should NOT have done that. I am so fucking stupid! _she thought, angrily. _Now he probably hates me…if he still remembers me, that is. Who knows, maybe he's found someone else? Witch Weekly says he might be with someone._ Lily slapped her forehead for thinking that anything in _Witch Weekly_ was true.

'I am so fucked up,' she said, through gritted teeth, her nails piercing into her poor pillow.

'Who you talking to, Lil?' asked Jane Riley, her dorm mate, sleepily.

'Myself,' Lily said, shrugging and grinning. 'Auror training does that to you.'

'Guess so.'

'Go back to sleep, Jane. I'm sorry I woke you.'

''Sno problem. I've got to be up in ten anyway,' Jane said, stretching. 'How come you got up before I did?'

'I didn't.'

'Oh no, Lil, you didn't sleep again? I swear you'll fall asleep during training! Marlo won't be happy with that.'

'Marlo can go fuck himself,' Lily said, narrowing his eyes. 'If he thinks that this shitty isolation makes good Aurors, it's my job to prove him wrong.'

'And risk your career?'

'Eh, minor setback.'

Jane shook her head exasperatedly. Lily was impossible. Jane looked around the room and saw her copy of _Witch Weekly_. 'It's strange, there are copies of this shitty magazine in the parlor, but we can't get a bloody letter.'

'You know what I think.'

Jane laughed. 'Yeah, kidnapping witches and wizards for the purpose of making toilet seats, 'cause normal people would willingly never do it.'

'Absolutely,' Lily said, smiling. 'Better get ready, yeah?'

'Yeah.'

One good thing Auror training had done to Lily was that it taught her how to have a bath in five minutes…not that she considered it a good thing. She emerged from the bathroom four minutes later, and began to put on her black clothes as Jane went in for a bath.

Aurors had to wear black. It was their "code" apparently…at least, according to Johnson Marlo it was. Marlo was their head trainer. He came up with the most ridiculous and taxing training schemes ever. He was universally hated, but he didn't care.

Jane came out of the loo, and began putting on her clothes too. 'So, Lil, you've been reading _Witch Weekly_?'

'I was bored.'

'Yeah…did you see the top ten eligible bachelors?'

Lily laughed. 'Of course I did. That list won't work for me unfortunately…I'm related to them all.'

'Yeah, except for Scorpius,' Jane said, cautiously. She knew all about the two of them. They had spent nights telling each other their various disaster stories.

'Except for him, yeah,' Lily said, curtly.

'Says here he's with someone.'

'I'm happy for him.'

'Lily.'

'What? He's at perfect liberty to go out with whomever he wants…who am I to judge? It's not like we're even together. Hell, I haven't spoken to him in seven fucking months!'

'So you're alright with it?'

'Why shouldn't I be?'

'Lily, stop it,' Jane said, firmly.

'Fine,' she said, defeated. 'If it's true, then it's my fault anyway.'

'It is,' she agreed. 'But there's no point worrying about that now, is there?'

Lily shrugged, and the pair made their way to the parlor where all the trainees had to assemble ever morning. 'I swear this shithole is like a fucked up school.'

'For fucked up people,' Jane said, grinning at Lily, who grinned back.

'POTTER! RILEY!' Marlo yelled. 'You're two minutes late!'

'There's a tragedy,' Lily muttered.

'What was that, Potter?'

'I said "look, a mulberry".'

Marlo narrowed his eyes at Lily. Jane pulled her so that they could fall into their assigned spots. 'Do you have to wind him up every morning, Lil?' Jane asked, but she was grinning.

'Yes, I do. Besides, this isn't morning…it's fucking midnight. The sun isn't even out yet!'

'How d'you know? We haven't seen the sun in months, remember?' Drake Bilson said. He was one of Lily's trainee friends, one year older that her.

'Point.'

They all stood silently waiting for the rest of the trainees to assemble. Lily and Jane always arrived well within the assigned time, but Marlo simply had a bone to pick with her since the very first day. You see, the first time Lily saw his mohawk, she couldn't stop herself from commenting. She said something about an ostrich and a Pygmy Puff…and well, it really pissed him off. Since then, it's always been 'pick on Potter day!'

'Merlin, what does he have planned for today?' Drake groaned.

They had done almost everything there was to train. They'd used Unforgivable Curses, practiced Shields, learned new hexes and jinxes, brewed the most disgusting potions, gone on missions (within Scotland), and dealt with "adverse" situations. Each of them had been injured at least sixty times in the past few months. Currently, Lily was sporting a cut lip, Jane had a twisted ankle, and Drake had a band aid on his forehead. They weren't allowed to use magic to heal their wounds because, according to Marlo, 'The pain trains you better than anything else.'

'So, you all arrived here as…well, useless, good-for-nothing kids,' Marlo said, pacing in front of them all. 'And now, after seven months, you still are useless and good-for-nothing…but not as much as you were when you came.'

'Insulting your own schemes there, mate. That's a new one,' Lily muttered, causing Drake and Jane to hide their smiles.

'Now the reason for this is because all of you are lazy! My schemes have worked wonders on others, but you lot are just too arrogant and lazy,' he said, extinguishing all doubt about his methods.

'There you go,' Lily whispered, shaking her head.

'I've done all I can. Now if you would all please return to your dorms, you'll find that your bags have been packed. All the shit that you've thrown around has been packed too, as a punishment. The shit includes chewed bubble gums, wrappers, stickers, posters, hair…and in some cases, actual shit,' Marlo said, eyeing Brandon Miller with disgust. Brandon merely smirked proudly.

'Ew,' Jane said, and Lily silently agreed. However, since Brandon probably did it to annoy Marlo, she thought it was brilliant.

'So all of you get lost,' Marlo said, smiling slightly.

None of the trainees could believe their ears. 'You're joking!' many of them yelled.

'No, not at all,' Marlo said, now smiling widely, much to Lily's shock. 'You're all done with your training. It usually takes about a year and a half, but with the isolation, we were able to complete sooner. You'll get your certificates in a few weeks by owl.'

'You're serious,' Lily said, her mouth wide open.

'I am, Potter. Now get to your rooms, grab your things and get back down here. THAT'S AN ORDER!'

Everyone jumped with fright from their seats and rushed to their rooms, excitedly talking and laughing, and in some cases singing and hopping.

'I don't fucking believe this,' Lily kept saying.

'I know!' Jane kept yelling back, happily.

They all re-assembled in the parlor and saw that Marlo was saying goodbye to everyone individually. When it was Lily's turn, she stepped forwards, grinning.

'Ah, Potter,' Marlo said, smiling and shaking his head. 'You hit a nerve on the first day here. But I realized that it was okay…I really did look like the child of a Pygmy Puff and an ostrich.'

Lily laughed. 'As much as I agree, I'll apologise…it was uncalled for, I guess.'

'It was, certainly. Now, Potter, I really hope you get into the Department. You really are your father's daughter. You'd make one hell of an Auror. It's been great training you…although I suggest you dye your hair…it's a dead giveaway.'

Lily was surprised. She never knew Marlo was capable of being nice, let alone give her advice about her hair. 'Wow, thanks, Marlo…I mean, sir. It's been great working with you too.'

Lily smirked, causing Marlo to laugh and say, 'Now, you know, that's just a lie.'

'At least I tried. Thanks for everything, Marlo!' She hugged him, shocking herself and Jane, and left the huge building that used to be her home.

'Aaaah,' she said, breathing in the fresh air. There were Portkeys all around them. Groups of people were already crowded around a few. A few others were saying tearful goodbyes to each other…and some others were snogging each other's faces off. Jane grinned, drinking in the scene. 'Didn't think I'd see the outside ever again.'

'No shit, Janey,' Lily said, grinning.

'Shut up,' Jane said. She hated that name.

'Well, I guess this is it,' Drake said, hugging Jane and Lily. 'I'll see you guys at the Department then.'

'If we decide to go,' Lily pointed out.

'Like you won't, after all this training.'

'Eh, well.'

Drake joined a few other huddled around a Portkey and they watched him disappear, back to Ireland.

'Let's get to a Portkey, Lil, I don't want to be stuck here forever,' Jane said, pulling Lily along. They caught one of the Portkeys to England, a smelly sock, much to everyone's disgust. They arrived at London. Immediately, most of them Disapparated home. Jane and Lily stayed behind and gave each other a tight hug.

'What I would've done there without you, I don't know,' Jane said.

'I know, right? And yeah, it would've sucked without you too. Heading home now?'

'Well, duh! You are too!'

'Nah, you know, I think I'll stay at the Leaky Cauldron for a bit…not prepared to meet everyone at home yet.'

'You mean Scorpius.'

'Yeah.'

'Lily, I swear to Merlin, if I find out you're at the Leaky Cauldron, I will kill you. You know what to do. Go home, meet your family and talk it out with Scorpius. Tell him you love him.'

'I don't love him, what shit,' Lily said, not meeting Jane's eyes.

'Oh, please, you do know how many blokes have tried to hit on you at training, don't you? You didn't even think about them once! And they were pretty hot. You love him. Yeah, you do, don't give me that look! Now go home!'

'Merlin, you're like my mother. Fine, I'll do…something. You know what to do too, right? Say yes to Max…you might be 18, but it doesn't matter, alright? You don't want to end it because of something like this. Got it? You don't have to get married now, but it might be nice for him to know that you two might…someday.'

Jane smiled. 'For a person whose love life is pretty shitty, you give good advice.'

'Mmm, it's a curse,' Lily said, smiling. 'Oh, and if you don't stay in touch, I'll rip your heart out.'

'Same goes for you, Lil. So…I'll see you sometime, then!'

'You too.' They hugged again, and Jane teared up. Lily did too, but she blinked them away. 'Stop it, Jane! There's no need to cry! I've been stuck with you for seven months. I'm sick of you, go away!' Lily said, grinning at Jane, who gave her a watery smile. With a final goodbye, Lily and Jane Disapparated to their respective homes.

Jane was greeted by her family of early-risers. She immediately Flooed her boyfriend, Max, and accepted his proposal. That day, they were both extremely ecstatic.

Lily didn't know what she'd come home to. Anger or love? She knew that her mum, dad and brothers would be delighted…but along with them was another person, who really mattered to Lily.

She walked up the front yard and decided to knock. Changing her mind, she made her way to the back door and whispered, 'Alohamora.' They never locked their house properly, these Potters. She creaked the door open and crept inside. It was dark. On seeing that there was no one in the kitchen, she let out a long breath.

'Lily?' someone said, incredulously, making her jump out of her skin. Some Auror she was going to be.

* * *

><p><strong>I had a lot of fun writing this. And I probably won't be able to update for another week. :( <strong>

**But I really hope you guys enjoy this for now! :)**


	10. Unpleasant

'Mum?'

'LILY!' Ginny said, pouncing on her daughter. 'Darling, I'm so glad you're home! I hated being the only woman around! Are you alright? Are you hungry? You must be! Merlin, you lip's cut, what the hell have they had you doing? Don't worry, love, I'll fix you up in no time. You need a nap, look at the state of you! I'm sure you-!'

'MUM!' Lily yelled, grinning. She could not possibly explain to her mother how much she had missed her. 'I'm fine! Stop fussing!'

'Well, can you blame me? You came out of me, so it's natural for me to feel protective,' Ginny said, squeezing her daughter and grinning.

'I can't believe I was ever inside you, Mum,' Lily said, shaking her head.

'Hmm. Hungry?'

'Famished.'

'Good. Sit. I've got some pancakes ready.'

'D'you know that I love you, Mumsy?'

'You'd better.'

Lily applied a generous amount of chocolate sauce to her strawberry-chocolate chip pancakes. She was in heaven as soon as the pancake touched her tongue. She hadn't had her mum's pancakes in such a long time.

'So, Lil, how was training?'

'Not now, Mum…I'm in a nice place right now.'

'Alright then, let's talk about Scorpius.'

Lily choked. 'Wh-Who-I-Are-Excuse me?'

Ginny raised her eyebrows. 'What happened there?'

'What? Nothing. What're you on about?'

'Merlin,' Ginny said, realization dawning on her face. 'You love him, darling.'

Lily looked horrified. 'Mum, what the hell're you talking about?'

'You love him.'

'Goddamn it, why does everyone keep saying that?'

'Lily, don't lie to yourself, alright? If you do, you've just got to accept it. If you don't like it, you'll get over him…but if it's anything like how I love your dad, it'll turn out wonderful.'

'Ew, Mum, can you not talk about loving Dad in front of me?'

'I think you're old enough not to get disgusted by it, Lil. I know you kids act like that for kicks. Now, I was your age too once, okay? So I think you can tell me what's going on.'

'Mum,' Lily said, getting angry. 'I just got home! It's too bloody early and I'm sleepy. I don't want to be bombarded with questions the second I step in, alright?'

'They're facts, actually, darling,' Ginny said, smirking at Lily. Lily threw her mother a dirty look and stormed out of the kitchen. 'That one's on her period,' she said, finishing her daughter's uneaten pancake.

Meanwhile, Scorpius was fast asleep in Al's apartment. They'd spent the night at a Muggle club, and had gotten bored to death. But there was alcohol, so they stayed.

He felt something warm slap his face. He shook his head and turned over. He was slapped again by this warm hand…suddenly his thoughts shifted to Lily. Where was she? When would she be back?

Suddenly, the warm hand slapped him extremely hard. 'Ow!'

'Wake up, you stupid prick.'

'Al, what is your problem? I was fast asleep!'

'Yeah, and you were making funny faces too…smiling then frowning.'

Scorpius sat up and flipped Al off, making him roll his eyes.

'D'you know what I think, Scor?'

'I honestly didn't know you could think in the first place, Al.'

'You need a shag, my friend.'

'Sorry?'

'You heard me. When was the last time you had shagged a bird?'

Scorpius scrunched up his face in concentration.

'Fuck me,' Al whispered. 'You haven't shagged anyone since Lily, have you?'

Scorpius didn't meet his eyes. He merely got up and went to brush his teeth.

Al had become very relaxed about Scorpius' feelings towards Lily. He was his best friend, and he was acting the same way any normal best friend would.

Scorpius emerged from the loo in nothing but boxers. 'You know,' Scorpius said, 'you have some pink bubble shit in your loo...what's up with that?'

'C'mon, they're bubbles! For a bubble bath! They're nice!'

'I'd advise you to stop reading _Witch Weekly_, Al.'

'Oh, look who's talking. Now excuse me while I go have a shower.'

'Not a bubble bath?'

'Fuck you.'

Scorpius laughed. He picked up the _Daily Prophet_ and began scanning it when the doorbell rang. That was strange. No one ever rang Al's doorbell. People usually just barged in or Apparated in. Shrugging, he opened the door and found himself in a situation that he was completely unprepared for.

Scorpius and Lily were face to face. They were both utterly horrified. Lily had expected Al to answer the door. The thought of Scorpius answering it had never crossed her mind. The thought of seeing Lily so soon had never crossed Scorpius' mind.

Although he'd wanted to see her desperately, he had absolutely no idea how to react. He'd wanted to yell at her…he'd gone through what he'd say in his head a million times. But when it mattered, words just failed him.

_Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck_. That was the only thing running through Lily's mind. Scorpius looked shocked…and extremely pissed off. And to top it all, he was shirtless. Lily also noticed that he was wearing the same boxers that he had worn the night they slept together. _Brilliant_. Taking a deep breath, she said, 'Hi.'

Scorpius continued to stare at her for two minutes, before saying, 'Hi.'

And the silence was back. Both were waiting for the other to say something. It was like their game all over again, except this time it was 'who can stay quiet the longest?'

Scorpius won, because Lily said, sighing, 'Is Al home?'

'Yeah. He's in the loo,' Scorpius said, sounding harsh.

'Okay,' Lily said, burying her hand in her pockets. 'Just tell him I came over, yeah?'

'You're leaving?' Scorpius blurted out, losing his façade of coldness.

'Well, yeah. I mean, I came to see Al, so.' That didn't come out the way Lily had wanted it to. She was about to correct herself, when Scorpius' eyes flashed and he said, 'In that case, you'd better get going.'

'I didn't-' Lily began, but was cut off by Al asking, 'Who in the name of Merlin's yellow pants rang the doorbell?'

Still glaring at Lily, Scorpius moved aside, so that Al could see his sister. 'LIL! YOU'RE BACK!' Al lifted Lily up and squeezed her so hard that she began to choke. 'Al, fucking twat!'

'Aw, I missed you too, Lil!' Al said, ruffling her hair and making her scowl. 'When'd you get back?'

'This morning.'

'It's morning now.'

'I mean like early morning. Really early.'

'C'mon in then, what're you doing outside?' Al demanded, pulling Lily in.

'Er…actually, I'll catch you later, Al. I've got to go see James,' Lily said, avoiding Scorpius' death glare.

'Hang on,' Al said, frowning. 'You came to see me before James?'

'Yeah, so?'

'That's ten points to me. I'm your favourite brother.'

'Just because I came to see you first? What shit, Al.'

'It's true, don't deny it, Lil.'

'Let me see your Christmas present, and we'll talk,' Lily said, smirking. She caught Scorpius' glare and the smirk vanished. 'I'd better get a move on. See you!'

Al looked on curiously as Lily Disapparated. 'What was that about?' Although, Al was fully aware of the situation, he was, to put it bluntly, a tad bit thick.

Scorpius just shrugged and went back to reading the _Prophet_. Suddenly, as though he was struck by lightning, Al gasped.

'What now, Al?' Scorpius snapped.

'That's the first time you've since her since the shag!'

'Oh, really?' Scorpius asked, sarcastically.

Al rolled his eyes. 'So what happened while I was in the loo?'

'Nothing.'

'Scor.'

'She said she came to see you.'

'So?'

'Only you.'

'Oh.' Al looked around his drawing room for a distraction. _Damn you, Al_, he thought. _Couldn't you have bought a few showpieces for the apartment?_

* * *

><p><strong>I managed to update! But I don't like this chapter much. I'd love to hear your comments. Thanks for reading! :)<strong>_  
><em>


	11. The Supposed Game

It had been a week since Lily came back. Things were not going well for her. Scorpius ignored her whenever they were in the same room, not that Lily ever tried making conversation with him. Her parents and brothers were ecstatic about her return. She hadn't heard from Jane since she told her that she was getting married in six months. Rose was preoccupied with Lorcan and work, although she tried to make time for Lily. Hugo was just himself, relaxed.

Deciding that she needed to do something about Scorpius, she was at his doorstep. _Maybe some other day_, she though, trying to discourage herself. _No! Right now. C'mon, Lily, you can do this!_

Breathing deeply, she knocked on his front door. She'd been knocking a lot lately. Scorpius answered the door, shirtless. Why was it that every time Lily saw him, he was without a shirt? It was as though the fates were taunting her. He looked at her curiously.

'Hey.'

'Al's not here,' Scorpius said, scowling.

'I'm not here to see Al,' she replied, calmly.

'You sure about that?'

'Well I came to your apartment, didn't I, you stupid tw-!' She stopped herself. She was here, after all, to receive insults, not to give them.

'Yeah, well Merlin alone knows how your head works,' Scorpius said, glaring.

'Can I come in?'

Scorpius walked inside, leaving the door open. Lily rolled her eyes and shut the door.

'So…' Lily began, looking around his house, which was a mess.

'Spit it out, Lil,' Scorpius snapped.

'Your place is a mess,' she said, ignoring his words.

'Well, I'm sorry about that,' he said, nastily.

'Ugh, fine,' Lily said, wringing her hands, and looking at him. 'I'm sorry, okay? I'm really, really sorry about everything that happened!'

'You're sorry?'

'I'm not saying it again.'

'You fucking left, Lily. For seven months!'

'Yeah, I'm aware of that, funnily enough.'

'Shut up! I didn't hear from you for seven months! You left without saying anything!'

'No one heard from me! I wasn't allowed to-!'

'If you were, would you?'

'What?'

'If you were allowed to stay in contact,' Scorpius said, looking her straight in the eye. 'Would you?'

'Obviously.'

'I mean with me.'

'Oh,' Lily said, biting her lip. 'Probably.'

'Probably not, you mean.'

'Did I say that?'

'No, but I can see it in your face.'

'Bullshit,' Lily said, now getting angry. 'What d'you want me to do? Beg for forgiveness? I've already apologized, so just fucking deal with it.'

'You didn't even mean it,' Scorpius said, icily.

'If you're going to be such a bitch about it, then yeah, I didn't mean it. Happy?' she asked, smiling sweetly.

'Delighted,' Scorpius snarled. Deciding that he wanted to hurt her, he said, 'I actually regret that night…a lot.'

'Can't possibly regret it more than I do,' Lily snapped.

Scorpius narrowed his eyes. 'I don't think it would have ever happened if I hadn't been so fucking drunk.'

That did it. _He'd been drunk_, she thought. She couldn't believe how utterly awful she was feeling. 'You- what?'

_It worked_, he thought. 'James' party, remember? I'd have probably done it with whoever had walked in.'

Lily didn't know if he was saying that just to piss her off, or if it was actually true. Either way, she felt like shit. Scorpius didn't stop there, however. 'Anyway, it doesn't matter now, does it? While you were off prancing in Scotland, I met someone.'

Lily looked him straight in the eyes this time. He didn't look like he was lying. _Just tell him_, her mind urged. But she found herself saying, 'That's great. I'm going to go now.'

Scorpius shrugged and watched her walk out. She didn't Apparate home, she chose to walk. She thought the wind would clear her thoughts, but it didn't. It just made them more muddled up.

After about an hour, she reached home. She entered through the back door and found her mum laughing with Astoria Malfoy.

'Lily!' Astoria said, getting up from her seat and hugging her. 'How've you been, love?'

'I'm-I'm fine,' Lily said, trying to smile. 'I'll-uh-I'll just be-somewhere.' She rushed upstairs to her room, leaving the two women looking extremely worried.

'How much d'you want to bet she was with Scorpius?' Ginny asked, sadly.

'I swear to Merlin if that boy did anything, I will make life hell for him,' Astoria said, with her head in her hands.

Ginny laughed, and then sighed. 'Don't worry, they'll figure it out.'

'I hope so.'

Lily lay on her bed, replaying the entire conversation over and over again. _He's with someone_, she told herself. _Get over it. It's over. It's not like there was anything there anyway. _But if there hadn't been anything between them, why was she feeling so bad?

Scorpius was trying to be pleased with himself. He had won. So why wasn't he feeling as happy as he used to, months ago? Convincing himself that it was because of his messy apartment, he began to clean it up. What he didn't realize was that it was real. It wasn't a game anymore.

* * *

><p><strong>So, what'd you think?<strong>

**I'm planning on making this story long...well, longer than my previous one. Bear with me, please! :)**


	12. The Same Decision

'You said what?' Al asked, incredulously.

Scorpius had just told him about his encounter with Lily the previous day. 'I said I'd met someone.'

'What are you, mental?' Al demanded. 'Why the fuck did you say that?'

'What? It's not like you're so keen on seeing Lily and me together anyway! Why do you care?'

'Because she's my sister, and though she may not show it, she has feelings! And because you're my fucking best mate!'

'Not a valid enough reason.'

'You're being a dick, you know?'

'Maybe.'

'Well, stop it, because you're really pissing me off.'

Scorpius rolled his eyes. 'Whatever, Al. Didn't you have to go home for dinner?'

Al glared at Scorpius and Disapparated to his parent's house, without a goodbye. He was greeted by James, who gave him a manly hug. 'Hey, Al. How've you been?'

'Great, just great. Lily here?' Al asked, looking around.

'She's lives here, idiot,' James replied. 'By the way, what's up with her?'

'Merlin, don't tell me she's become all quiet and shit.'

'No, she's doing her normal amount of talking…but it seems put on. Know what I mean?'

'Yeah.'

'D'you know what happened?'

Al looked at James, wondering if he should tell him. Lily was Al's sister, but Scorpius was his best friend, so he would listen to both sides of the story. James, on the other hand, was just good friends with Scorpius, and Lily was his little sister. 'Er…well, it's Scorpius-'

'Shut it, I don't even want to know!' James yelled, covering his ears with his hands and walking into the drawing room. Al rolled his eyes and followed. Lily was sprawled on the couch, watching the television. They were wizards, but there were some things that Muggles invented that were brilliant, even to them.

'Hey, Lil,' Al said, ruffling her hair.

'Al!' she said, brightly. 'How's it going in the world of the sick and the ugly?'

'Sick people aren't ugly,' Al said, grinning at his sister's shallowness.

'I wasn't talking about the sick ones, mate,' Lily said, winking.

James laughed as Al glared. She seemed herself, but there was something off…something that neither of her brothers could place their finger on.

As the three siblings talking and joked in the drawing room, Harry and Ginny were in the kitchen…cooking, thankfully. 'Harry! That's salt!' Ginny said, snatching the bottle away from him.

'No, it isn't,' Harry said, 'that's sugar, it says so on the bottle.'

'I asked Lily to fill in the bottle, love. She doesn't pay attention to what she does, you know that.'

'Mmm…so she wants to be an Auror?' Harry asked, grinning.

Ginny gave him a reprimanding, but amused, look. 'She'll make a great Auror, you just wait and see.'

'Merlin, Ginny, I have absolutely no doubts. It's just that she seems a bit preoccupied lately.'

Ginny raised her eyebrows. It wasn't like Harry to notice such things…him and Ron were probably the thickest people she'd ever seen, but she loved them nonetheless. 'So you've noticed.'

'Wait, you mean you know what's going on?' Harry demanded. He hated being the last one to know about something.

'I am her mum.'

'That shouldn't mean you get a higher position, you know,' Harry said, grumpily.

'Excuse me,' Ginny said, with mock-offence. 'But did you give birth to them?'

'How long are going to hold that against us?' Harry asked, grinning.

'As long as I want.'

'Anyway, Lily just shrugged when I said that the Chudley Cannons would kick the Holyhead Harpies arse…usually she argues, you've seen it with Ron. But this time, nothing. So what's going on with her?'

'Oh, you know, Scorpius. And the Chudley Cannons don't stand a chance.'

'WHAT?' Harry said, spitting out the chocolate he'd been munching on.

'Don't tell me you've a problem with him, Harry, because I know you adore him. And don't say you've a problem with Lily having a love life, because at her age, we did.'

Harry rolled his eyes at his wife. 'That's not the issue! But just, please, Ginny, don't say love life…it makes me uneasy. And about the Cannons, PLEASE!'

Ginny laughed loudly, but nodded for him to continue.

'What happened?'

'Something very ordinary.'

Harry looked utterly confused. Ginny sighed. 'I forget how think you are sometimes.'

'But it's one of the things you love about me,' Harry said, smirking.

'Ah, well. Anyway, they, um…had a night (Harry cringed). Stop it, Harry. And then she left, without saying anything.'

'Why would she do that?'

'Don't ask me,' Ginny said, shrugging. 'My daughter's mind works in funny ways. And I'm guessing she went to apologise, but that didn't go well. So, here she is, moping.'

Harry thought about it for a while. Then he said something Ginny didn't expect. 'Who all knew before me?'

Ginny laughed again, and said, 'Let's see, Al, James, Astoria…oh, and Hermione.'

'What?' Harry asked, aghast. 'Astoria?'

'It's her son!'

'And Hermione?'

'She's my sister-in-law! '

'So?'

'I had to tell her, obviously.'

'But you wouldn't tell your husband,' Harry grumbled. 'My sons knew before I did? That's shameful.'

'Mmm,' Ginny agreed. 'It is. Let's have dinner now, shall we?'

Scowling, Harry left the kitchen, followed by Ginny. The Potter family sat at their table, a once in a blue moon event, and began to attack the food.

'Fo, I haff wiss pafent,' Al said, his mouth bulging with potatoes. 'He wees wit his mouf fu.'

James and Lily started at their brother. 'Do you want to do it or shall I?' James asked Lily.

'Be my guest, James,' Lily said, grinning.

'Okay,' James said, clearing his throat. 'Hey Al, SWALLOW!'

Al glared as Ginny said, 'Really Al, you are so like Ron sometimes.'

'That's not necessarily a bad thing,' Al said, swallowing.

'Touche,' Lily said. 'So, I've been thinking…I'm becoming an Auror.'

'I think we already knew that, Lil,' Harry said, laughing.

'Yeah, I mean, did you think none of us noticed your seven month absence?' James asked, sceptically.

'No,' Lily said, as though she was talking to some really dull people. 'What I mean is, I going to become an Auror! Like really! I'm done with training, and now I'll do some real work.'

'Are you sure, Lil?' Harry asked. 'Don't you want to take a gap year…like Scorpius?' Ginny glared at Harry. _This is exactly why I didn't want to tell you!_ she thought. Having been married for years, Harry understood that look and shut up.

Lily simply ignored the last part of her father's sentence and said, 'No, I think I'm ready to start.'

'Alright, then,' Harry said, relived.

'Wait,' Al said, 'doesn't Dad have to interview you?'

'Yep,' Lily said, smirking.

'That's actually unfair,' James said, but he too was smirking.

'Don't think I'll go easy on you, Lil,' Harry warned. 'You can fix an appointment with Saunders.'

'What?' Lily wailed. 'C'mon, Dad, I hate that guy!'

'If you're going to work in the Auror Department, love, you're going to have to learn to stand some people.'

Lily groaned.

'So having Harry Potter as your dad is utterly useless,' James concluded.

'Hear, hear!' Lily and Al said. Ginny grinned at an annoyed Harry.

'I'll choose to ignore that. Floo Saunders tomorrow and fix up an appointment. I'll get the dessert.'

'C'mon, Dad!' Lily called to his retreating figure. 'I'll hate you if you don't!'

'I can live with that,' Harry called back, laughing.

'This sucks,' Lily said, stabbing her potatoes.

They enjoyed a nice meal after a very long time. Soon, it got late, and after continually rejecting their mother's proposal to stay the night, James and Al decided to leave. 'See you, Lil,' James said, hugging her.

'Yeah,' she said. 'Bye, Al.'

The brothers Disapparated. James went home, but Al went to Scorpius'.

'Hey,' he said, looking around Scorpius' clean apartment. 'You cleaned up.'

'Yep,' Scorpius said, grinning. 'Guess what?'

'You're pregnant?'

'Ha ha, Al,' he said, rolling his eyes. 'I'm going to become an Auror.'

'That isn't new news.'

'No, I mean I'm going to start work…tomorrow maybe…whenever I get an appointment with your dad.'

'Oh,' Al said. Suddenly, Al face brightened. 'Oh,' he said, delightedly.

'What?' Scorpius asked, eyeing him strangely.

'Nothing,' Al shrugged, hiding his smile. 'Absolutely nothing. You're going have…fun working. Trust me.'

* * *

><p><strong>Hehehe, how is it? I updated pretty fast, didn't I? :P <strong>

**I'm online a lot now because I'm obsessed with myHogwarts, so I decided to update.**


	13. Brief Pacts

'Ah, Miss Potter, I was wondering when I'd see you here,' said Edgar Mill, a ninety-four year old wizard who was a consultant at the Auror Department. Lily smiled at him. He'd known her since she was little. She used to come to work with her father and sit with Edgar. He was great with children, but didn't have any himself.

'Hello, Edgar,' she said.

'Here for an interview that could possibly change your life?' he asked, smiling from behind his desk.

Lily laughed. 'I think I had my life changed enough with the mental training session. Where's Saunders'

'Oh, yes, Johnson Marlo and his schemes,' he said, sighing and shaking his head. 'Saunders has the day off. Well, Miss Potter-'

'Lily,' she corrected.

'Lily,' he smiled, 'have a seat. He'll be ready for you in a few minutes.' Lily obeyed. She began playing with her hair, which had grown longer, but was still choppily cut. She looked around the intimidating Auror Department. The walls were painted white, with a greenish-blue tinge to it. The sunlight filtering in from the windows was also slightly bluish. The walls were covered with many paintings…some gruesome, showing the effects of Unforgivable Curses…others just paintings of harmless things such as the sunrise and dolphins. One wall was devoted to the portraits of previous Heads of the Auror Department. Currently, most of them were sleeping, despite it being noon. She could be working here if all went well today. She could come here every day and escape from the mess that is her life. _Well, it's not really a mess_, she thought. _Mum and Dad had it worse at my age, having to deal with the aftermath of the War._ But still, as everyone does at times of misery, Lily liked to think she had the worst of it. As much as she hated it, she felt sorry for herself. _You could fix it, you know, quite easily, actually_, her inner conscience chided. She shook her head to remove Scorpius from her thoughts. She was going to become an Auror and she wouldn't be held down by some dick, who didn't even love her.

Just as she straightened herself and took a deep breath, they very person she was trying to forget about materialized at the entrance to the Department. He didn't see her, with her wide eyes. _Oh, Merlin, why?_ _Why me?_ she thought, desperately. If she did ever meet Merlin, she'd have a thing or two to say to him, indeed. She sat back, hoping that he wouldn't see her because of the pillar beside her. Strangely, he didn't see her. And when he was asked to take a seat by Edgar, he sat elsewhere…somewhere away from Lily's sight. _What the fuck is he doing here?_ she thought, annoyed.

The second she began pondering that, Edgar said, 'He's ready for you Miss- I mean, Lily.'

Lily glanced at him, gave him a smile and a nod, and rose. She opened the door to the Head's office, but not before she caught the look of shock and anger on Scorpius' face. She closed the door behind her and turned to face her father. At least, she thought she'd face her father. Sitting where her father should have been, was an old, bald man…someone she recognized.

'Hello, Lily,' said the deep voice of Kingsley Shacklebolt, former Minister for Magic.

'Uh,' was all Lily managed. She had been in his company before. Kingsley and her parents were old friends. But she didn't expect him to be the one deciding if she could become an Auror or not.

Kingsley laughed. 'Why don't you take a seat?'

Lily sat. 'So…do you interview all Aurors-to-be?'

'No, no. This is just temporary. I've retired, remember? Your father asked for a favour, and how could I say no? He's working on the break-in case.'

'The one that happened months ago?'

Kingsley nodded. 'He was Flooed earlier this morning. It must've been something urgent. He begged me to take his place for the day, so here I am.'

'Huh,' Lily said, sitting back. Somehow, she liked this arrangement better. She really didn't want her father interviewing her.

'Where's Scorpius?' Kingsley asked, frowning.

'What?' Lily asked, suddenly defensive. She relaxed after a second, because Kingsley had just meant that as a question…with no strings attached.

'I asked Edgar to send in both of you,' Kingsley said. 'Must be getting old, that man.' He produced something small and white from the tip of his wand and muttered something to it. It vanished within seconds. Those were the miniature Patronus'…ones used for extremely short distance communication.

Before Lily could register what had happened, Scorpius walked in, and took a seat next to her, stiffly. He did not acknowledge her presence and neither did she.

'We have ourselves an odd situation,' Kingsley began. 'You're the only two applying to start right now. Usually people apply after a few more months. So we have two options. One: you two head back home, come again sometime after two months, and apply with everyone else.'

'No,' Lily and Scorpius said at the same time.

'I thought you'd say that. The other option is that we go through the normal procedure…with a slight disadvantage in numbers.'

'I don't get it,' Scorpius said, frowning. Lily too, did not follow anything that he had just said…partly because it didn't make sense to her and partly because Scorpius was right next to her.

'You see, the rumour is that to apply to become an Auror, an interview takes place. Everyone who steps in here is made to propagate that rumour. What really happens is that we send you out on a mission. This time, there'll be only the two of you. Usually, the whole lot is sent together. Do you understand now?'

They both nod immediately, but it takes a few seconds for the full implication of his words to sink in. Only the two of them. Each of them were capable, but it was the thought of them together on a mission that neither of them wanted.

'Hang on,' Lily said, sitting forward. 'You mean I have to go on some Auror-ey mission with _him_?'

'Yes,' Kingsley said, not understanding her revulsion at the thought.

'I don't fancy going on one with you either, you know,' Scorpius spat.

'I think I'm getting the worse end of the deal here,' Lily snarled back.

'Hold it,' Kingsley commanded. They shut up. 'If you two detest the idea if working on a mission together, you could always back out. You don't have to do this. Come back in a few months.'

'No!' they said again. They glanced at each other for a second, before Scorpius sighed. 'I don't mind working with her,' he mumbled.

'Excellent,' Kingsley said. 'And you, Lily?'

Lily let her stubbornness get the better of her. She glared at a pencil stand on her father's desk. She didn't respond until Kingsley said again, 'Lily?'

'I guess I don't mind either,' she got out, as though the words caused her pain.

'Great,' Kingsley said, relieved. Adolescent fights were not one of his strong suits. 'Now would you two like to be briefed about your mission now?'

They nodded. 'Portus,' Kingsley muttered. 'Here's the Portkey that'll take you where you have to go. Good luck!'

After forcing smiles on their faces, they grabbed the Portkey and felt a tug at their navels. They landed face-down in a dark and dinghy warehouse. 'Oh, perfect,' Lily muttered, dusting off her clothes and rising to her feet.

Scorpius glared and looked around. Basically, he was glaring at everything in the warehouse. _Stuck in a warehouse with Lily_, he thought, angrily. If things had gone differently, he would have had fun being stuck here. With Lily. Suddenly, a hint of fear drops into his blood. What were they doing in a warehouse? Why wasn't there anyone around? What if they died?

The fear escapes him just a fast as it had entered. The ridiculousness of the thought of them randomly dying made him laugh.

Lily glared at him. 'Oh, this just gets better. I'm in a sodding warehouse with a fucking retard.'

Scorpius stopped laughing. He was about to retort with something really witty, when someone said, 'Potter! I didn't think I'd see you for a while!'

'Marlo?' Lily said, incredulously.

'Eh?' Scorpius said, blankly.

From the darkness the figure of Johnson Marlo stepped out, grinning. The grin did not suit his face, in Lily's opinion. 'Potter, Potter…and you are?' Marlo asked Scorpius.

'Scorpius Malfoy.'

'Oh yeah! I thought I recognized you from _Witch Weekly_.'

Scorpius grimaced. As much of an honour as it was, he didn't particularly like being featured in that magazine.

The next hour passed fairly quickly. Marlo briefed them on their mission. There was this wizard, in Yorkshire, who enjoyed Muggle killing. He would pose as a commoner and kill them. The plan was simple enough: arrest him.

After the briefing was done and Marlo left them, Lily and Scorpius found that their Portkey was gone. Lily was about to turn on the spot to Apparate home, when Scorpius grabbed her wrist. They both were transported to the yard in front of Lily's house. 'What'd you do that for?' she snapped.

'Look,' he said, narrowing his eyes. 'If we're going on this mission, we've got to stop acting like…this, alright?'

Lily glared, but nodded. 'Fine. But I still can't stand you.'

'Same here. See you tomorrow, then?'

Lily stared at him for a minute before she turned and entered her house. Scorpius stood there thinking for a few minutes. _Maybe this mission would be okay…fun, even_, he thought. Suddenly, out of nowhere, he decided that he wanted her. He didn't care that she had left him. He loved her. Everyone said she did too, and he was going to make her admit it, whether she liked it or not. The possibility of her not loving him never crossed his mind. He wanted her. And he would have her, indeed.

* * *

><p><strong>I'm so sorry for the long wait. My summer's started, and I've just been out the whole day. I hope you liked this one though. Did anyone notice my slight AVPM reference? :P<strong>

**Remember to tell me what you think. :)**

**And, amama123, right now, there isn't much to do on myHogwarts. You just randomly add friends and get to know people. But a few new features have opened up today, like Wizard Cards and the Pensieve. :D**


	14. Provocative Behaivour Helps

'You follow me?' Marlo asked, as he handed Lily a gun. 'As Muggle as can be, understand?'

Lily nodded. She was dressed casually: jeans and a 'Beatles' t-shirt…to get the 'Muggle look' right. Scorpius was dressed in jeans and a well-fitting shirt. Lily tried not to stare. She decided to constantly glare at him as an excuse to check him out. He returned the gesture.

'Would you two stop it?' Marlo snarled. 'I don't care if you hate each other's guts, you're going on this mission and you're going to like it! You brought it on yourself, so stop acting like a bunch of kids!'

Scorpius gave him the tiniest of nods and Lily just shrugged. They were supposed to pose as Muggles, from London. They were supposed to 'lose' their way and end up in Yorkshire. From there, it was up to them to arrest Jupiter Jenkins, the Muggle killer.

'You've got a plan worked out, then?' Marlo asked.

'We'll figure it out as we go,' Lily said.

'Alright, then. Be careful, I won't accept failure,' he warned. 'And, you know, don't get yourselves killed. Off you go!'

'See you,' she said, turning. Scorpius waved and walked ahead of her. He reached the car first and jumped into the driver's seat. Lily narrowed her eyes. 'Shit,' she muttered.

'What?' Scorpius asked.

'I left this trunk back in the warehouse, could you go get it?' she asked, in a honeyed voice.

'Why can't you?' he asked, grumpily. He didn't want to get up.

'It's really heavy!'

'Ugh,' he grumbled. 'Fine, I'll get it.' He got out of the car and started towards the warehouse, when he heard a dull thump. He turned to see Lily smirking at him from the driver's seat.

'Well, what're you waiting for?' she asked, 'Let's go!'

Scorpius pinched the bridge of his nose to stay calm. He had wanted to drive. He could easily lift her out of the seat since she basically weighed nothing, but that would create problems. He got into the passenger seat, all the while glaring at Lily. On the bright side, though, she seemed to be coming back to her usual sneaky self.

'So,' he said, after ten minutes of silent driving. 'What's this car?'

'It's called a Ferrari,' she replied, her eyes on the road ahead of her.

'Hmm. Was it expensive?'

'Wouldn't know,' she shrugged. 'Just Confounded the bloke selling it.'

'He'd notice it was missing,' Scorpius pointed out.

'Not if he never knew it existed,' she said, glancing at him. 'That's the beauty of the _Obliviate_.'

'You wiped his memory?' he asked, incredulously.

'Not all of it. Just the part about the car…Merlin, I'm not that cruel! He probably had a family and shit.'

Scorpius gave a relieved sort of sigh. 'You're a pretty okay driver, you know.'

'I'm a brilliant driver, yes.'

Scorpius laughed. 'Not according to James, for some reason. Apparently, he puked after you drove him somewhere.'

Lily laughed, recalling that time. 'Yeah, well, James is a pussy. He can't stand something going fast.'

'You are going pretty fast, actually.'

'What? I'm just going at an 80! That's nothing! You wait till we get on the highway.'

'Oh, Merlin,' Scorpius muttered. _You brought it on yourself_, he told himself. 'What's our plan?'

'You ask a lot of questions, you know that?' Lily told him, sounding slightly annoyed.

'Excuse me for wanting to know something that could possibly endanger my life.'

Lily rolled her eyes. 'Just play along with whatever I do, alright? That's the plan.'

'That's the plan?' Scorpius asked, aghast. 'I'm going to die.'

'Are you a wizard or not, you big pussy?' Lily demanded.

Scorpius glared. The next half hour passed without any conversation. The silence was actually comfortable. They both seemed relaxed. This seemed to bother Lily, for she asked, 'D'you realize we could actually die?'

'Good morning, Lil,' Scorpius said, with fake enthusiasm. 'Well, duh.'

'Ugh. You know what I mean.'

'You mean why're we so relaxed when we know this?'

'Yeah.'

'Dunno,' Scorpius shrugged. A smile took over his face as he said, 'Maybe it's because we're together.'

Lily burst out laughing. She stopped the car for a full five minutes of non-stop laughing. Scorpius joined in, as if he could help it.

'That has to be the cheesiest shit I've ever heard you say,' Lily said, grinning.

Scorpius looked mock-offended. 'I am hurt!' Lily laughed again as he said, 'I meant that! How could you hurt me like that?'

'Of course you meant that,' she said, sarcastically nodding.

'Yes, I did,' Scorpius said, pretending to be honest.

'Because you care about me,' Lily teased, in a sing-song voice. 'Because you love me!'

Scorpius laughed a little and rolled his eyes. 'Start the car, squeaky.'

'Yes, you love me!' she finished, grinning and starting the car. Little did she know, he actually did.

Things seemed to ease up between the two after that exchange. Occasionally, one of them would burst out laughing, causing the other to join in. Eventually, they reached the highway. The car was going at the same speed for the first kilometer. After that, however, things seemed to quicken drastically.

'Lily,' Scorpius warned. 'Slow down.' She didn't even look at him. She just kept driving faster and faster, causing Scorpius to get queasier and queasier.

'It wouldn't hurt to slow down a bit, Lil,' he said, one hand on his stomach. 'I kind of had a heavy dinner!' No response. 'LILY! Are you fucking crazy?'

Suddenly, a sound came from behind them. It sounded like a police siren. Immediately, Lily brought the car to a stop. Scorpius and her were jerked in front, causing Scorpius to knock his head against the dashboard.

'Now look what you've done!' he hissed.

'Just remember the plan,' Lily whispered, as she lowered her window.

'Plan?' Scorpius said, blankly. 'What plan?'

'Madam,' said the angry voice of a police officer. 'You shouldn't be driving like that.'

'I'm sorry,' Lily said, innocently.

The officer softened a bit. 'Er…yes. What made you drive like that anyway?'

'She's bloody mental, that's why,' Scorpius muttered, to softly for the officer to hear, but loud enough for Lily to hear. He received a well-aimed kick in the shins and had to cover his face with his hands to prevent himself from screaming.

'What's wrong with him?' the officer asked, a little too curiously.

'It's like I was saying,' Lily said, miserably. 'He, here, can't believe it! Neither can I, actually. We were on our way home, when these two old people just appeared in front of us. It was like they came out of nowhere! And then there was fire…and flashes of green and-'

'Madam,' the officer stopped her. He gave a long sigh, taking in what she'd just said. It was perfect. She had the exact expression of someone who'd been through a traumatic and implausible experience. It also helped that she was good looking and had slid her top a little lower than necessary.

'Madam,' he said again, shaking his head and looking at her face. 'It's clear you've been through a lot…I'll- er- I'll just give you a ticket then, shall I?' He quickly got out his notepad and wrote Lily a ticket. 'Come by to the station and pay that…is that okay?'

'Thank you ever so much, officer!' Lily gushed. 'What would your name be?'

The officer blushed. 'It's, um, Jupiter…Officer Jenkins, actually.'

'I'll make sure to ask for you,' Lily said, with a seductive smile.

'Yes…well, take care, then. Er-yes…' He looked around, glanced at Lily one last time and made his way back to his car. Scorpius was now just staring at Lily, confused.

Lily waited till the officer drove off, and then turned to Scorpius and smirked. 'He was too easy.'

'What?' he demanded.

'Don't you pay attention?' Lily asked, starting up the car. 'Marlo told us that his informants told him that Jenkins was posing as a police officer. What a twat, he is…didn't even bother changing his name! No wonder we got this case.'

'Oh,' Scorpius said, trying to remember when Marlo told them that. _Oh yeah_, he remembered, _I'd been staring at Lily then. Of course._ 'So-' Scorpius started, and then saw Lily's top. It was…low. Very low. Provocatively low. Such provocation should be banned by law, Scorpius thought, gritting his teeth.

'So what?' Lily asked, glancing at him.

'So that's why Jenkins was stuttering like a girl,' Scorpius finished, regaining his cool demeanor.

'What ever do you mean?' Lily asked, innocently.

Scorpius rolled his eyes and gestured to her top.

'Oh, this little thing? It has a life of its own, I tell you,' Lily said, with mock-seriousness. Then she flashed Scorpius a wide smile and said, 'All in a day's work.'

Scorpius gave a small laugh and stared at her, taking her appearance in properly for the first time in months. Her fringe had grown longer and was almost in her eyes. Her eyes seemed to be a darker shade of blue than before, and they held the sparkle that he hadn't seen in a while.

Feeling someone staring, Lily turned and gave Scorpius a questioning look.

Scorpius shook his head in response. 'What now?'

'You decide,' Lily said.

'Really?' he asked, shocked.

'I guess you deserve to, for once.'

'I do,' he confirmed, grinning. 'Let's stay the night at some motel.'

'Motel, huh?' she asked, squinting to see ahead in the dark.

'Yep.' Oh if Lily knew the things going through Scorpius' head!

* * *

><p><strong>I'm sorry for the long wait. Pleaseee forgive me! Hope you all liked this chapter, though. Review and thanks a lot for reading! :)<strong>


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